The present invention relates generally to structural panels, and more particularly to a novel high strength structural panel and method of making the same which provides a novel building construction element.
The building industry, and particularly the housing segment of the building industry, has long been concerned with low-cost construction techniques which lend themselves to both relatively high rates of production and low construction costs. The emphasis on low-cost housing has increased as a normal result of increased population growth, the establishment of retirement communities, and the increase in leisure time and greater demand for second homes. Recent trends in housing construction have introduced the concept of mass-produced homes to eliminate many of the conventional on-site constructional techniques which contribute to high building costs. The mass-produced housing concept utilizes pre-fabricated structural components, such as walls and roof sections, which are transported to the building site and assembled to form a housing unit. In order to accomplish satisfactory housing units at relatively low cost, the pre-fabricated structural components must be economical to manufacture, of high integrity and durability, and must lend themselves to ease of assembly with other structural components.
Various methods have been tried in an attempt to provide panels of foamable resin material which are of a size sufficient to permit building of houses therefrom and have the necessary structural integrity. The known techniques for producing structural panels have, in the majority, failed to provide structural panels which have uniform core density and are devoid of air pockets or bubbles within the core which tend to substantially weaken the structural panels. In one approach to the manufacture of structural panels, a foamable resin core material is introduced into a generally horizontally disposed open form or mold and allowed to rise during expansion and curing. The cured core is then removed from the mold and cut or sliced to provide panel slabs of desired thickness. The cut core slabs are then provided with polyester skins which are glued to the outer surfaces of the cores to provide the finished slab. This approach is relatively costly and does not preclude delamination of the side skins from the core body. The present invention overcomes the disadvantages in the prior art methods of structural panel construction by providing a structural panel and method for making the same which results in a uniform density high strength core integrally secured to side skin sheets, the panel being particularly effective for use in low-cost housing construction.